Construction worker recalls choatic scene in Byram during trial

By Debra Friedman, STAFF WRITER

Published 9:14 pm, Tuesday, January 19, 2010

STAMFORD -- A construction worker caught in the middle of a property dispute between two Byram neighbors testified Tuesday in state Superior Court about the chaotic scene that unfolded in July 2007 as he worked to install a fence on Byram Shore Road.

The testimony came during the first day of trial in the case against Pasquale Ciullo, 55, and his son Angelo Ciullo, 25, both of 1 Byram Dock Street, who are charged with multiple felony counts for allegedly restraining two day laborers with guns and carrying weapons in their truck. Pasquale Ciullo is also accused of beating his neighbor with a shovel during a dispute.

Joe Espinoza Diaz, a Port Chester, N.Y., resident told a nine-person jury he was mixing concrete outside 174 Byram Shore Road on July 4 when a black Chevy Silverado pick-up truck sped down the road and abruptly stopped inches from where he was working. Diaz said the Ciullos jumped out of the truck holding handguns and began yelling.

Diaz also recounted how the woman who hired him to install a fence, Rose Pinchuk, began screaming and running toward her neighbor's house. "He (Pasquale Ciullo) ran after the lady," said Diaz. "In one hand he held a shovel we were working with."

Diaz said he did not see Ciullo hit Pinchuk, then 60, with the shovel, but they quickly ran out of his view, going behind a neighbor's house. Pinchuk lives at 174 Byram Shore Drive. The Ciullos own the property at 176 Byram Shore Drive, but live on 1 Byram Dock Street, according to property records.

Prior to Diaz's testimony, Sgt. John Slusarz testified about his role in supervising the crime scene, which involved searching the truck where weapons were in plain view, seizing a shovel next to a mailbox at 176 Byram Shore Road and taking pictures of blood-stained steps in the backyard of 178 Byram Shore Road.

On cross examination, attorney Edward Gavin, who represents Pasquale Ciullo, asked Slusarz if he noticed a trail of blood leading behind the house. "No I did not," said Slusarz.

The defense also questioned the characterization of one of the weapons found in the truck, which Slusarz called an old-fashioned police baton. Gavin displayed current police batons to the jury to show the difference in size. The lawyers previously argued that police should not have searched the truck without getting a warrant in a pre-trial hearing. However, in December, a judge ruled police acted properly and the evidence found in the truck was admissible.

Pasquale Ciullo is charged with first-degree assault, three counts of unlawful restraint and a weapons in a motor vehicle charge for the incident. Angelo Ciullo is charged with two counts of unlawful restraint and one count of weapons in a motor vehicle. Both could face jail time if convicted.

The Ciullos rejected a plea deal earlier this year, opting to take their case to trial. The trial is expected to last several weeks.